Neena Gill (S&D
).
– Mr President, this House has shown extraordinary patience with Egypt, which is considered a key partner by many in the House. But I believe it is time we made up our mind. Can we stand by a partner where nearly 400 activists and dissidents have disappeared off the radar since August 2016? Where students like Giulio Regeni are murdered in cold blood? Where 22 people are arrested for waving rainbow flags, and where rockets are bought from North Korea?

I share the concerns outlined by the High Representative over the economy and the ticking time bomb of youth unemployment, but we cannot let Egypt be the sole decider in our partnership, excluding any cooperation on the rule of law and fundamental rights. I have two questions to the Commissioner. Firstly, our total ongoing assistance to Egypt is worth EUR 11 billion. What are we doing to leverage this? Secondly, what measures have been taken to follow up on the resolution adopted last year following Regeni’s murder to stop companies from exploiting technology that contributes to human rights violations in Egypt?